Written and Directed by: James Gunn
Cast: Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Viola Davis
Swift shot: It’s rare that a sequel surpasses its original, but that is exactly what The Suicide Squad does. Call it redemption of a lackluster original. We finally have the Suicide Squad movie we’ve been waiting for.
James Gunn manages to deliver a movie that is fun, exciting, disgusting, and entertaining as Hell!
The cringe-factor alone makes this one a must-see for schlock lovers. It’s like glorious garbage. Shit, I even spotted Lloyd Kaufman in at least one scene. Gunn knew the tone he wanted, and his cast knew the tone he wanted, and they all delivered perfectly.
All the places where Ayer failed, Gunn took notes and most importantly made sure to never take this movie too seriously.
Basically it is just the Dirty Dozen in the DC Universe, and Gunn went deep into the depraved depths of DC villainy, to give us the weirdest baddies ever assembled on screen. I mean, freakin’ Polka-Dot Man for fuck’s sake…!
I always get tired of the same old villains, over and over again. And Gunn actually picked from many different comic eras and styles to put together his Task Force X.
[Spoiler alert: Perhaps my favorite part of the movie is who died. Gunn starts off the film with a mission about this team, and he basically kills them all! Then we find out there’s a whole other team that is the real team, or at least the remaining team, that we follow the rest of the movie. End of Spoilers]
There’s been a lot of hype about King Shark, and honestly, I didn’t know it was Stallone until it dawned on me that I saw his name in the credits but hadn’t seen his cameo. Then, duh, it hit me, he’s the perfect guy for King Shark. He mentioned in the Production Notes that he played him like Quasimodo (and I mean, Rocky was also somewhat inspired by that archetype).
You can’t help but love the friendless monster. And much like Quasimodo, he has a damsel that helps show him that even he deserves love . . . or at least a friend or two that he doesn’t swallow or literally tear apart.
Bloodsport (kind of a shame they didn’t cast JCVD) is an interesting character who really doesn’t care about anything, and only joins the squad because Waller threatens to basically have his kid killed.
He is a reluctant participant and a reluctant leader. He has an incredible suit that allows him to essentially pull weapons out of thin air, or at least that is how it looks. In fact his suit has all the pieces necessary to manufacture each weapon he draws. But Elba does it so fast, I thought it was some kind of nano-tech.
For the most part, this fantastical film is grounded in as much reality as possible . . . particularly where it counts.
The plot is right out of the comics; the Squad has to infiltrate Jotunheim, a veritable Gothic Nazi fortress hidden in the fictional country of Corto Maltese which harbors an interstellar secret that the Thinker has been working on for decades.
Seems the nation has just had a coup d’état and the new leader, President Douchebag is not friendly to the Americans.
I could have lived without the cliché Waller shit, but that is who her character is, a devious sociopath who would do anything to protect American interests. And she had some company in Peacemaker.
And after his knee-bending and dick-sucking of the Chinese Communist human rights abusers, I could see why Cena was so eager to portray someone that made a mockery of America. His contempt for America is on full display as he hams up each scene with a biting performance that oozes sarcasm and spite. But, he loves America or something. I’m glad he had a fucking toilet on his head the whole movie. Moving on…
Just as with the previous film, Margot Robbie steals every scene. She’s just effervescent, radiating physicality and agility like a carefree cassowary shredding her enemies to pieces. Since the last movie, she has evolved from a “Mr. J.” devotee into someone who takes a more proactive approach in dealing with twisted men.
I am still in awe of her, and it is like she was put on the earth to be Harley Quinn. It’s unnerving, to be honest.
There’s also Ratcatcher 2, and I loved the fact that they gave her the obvious #2, which they do in comics from time to time, but you almost never see it in movies. Who wants to be a #2? Also, they made her a millennial who just really wants to sleep and for everyone to get along. Loved it!
In fact, the mashing of all these different eras and generational heroes, err villains made for some good bi-centurial banter and barbs.
Did I forget anyone important or at all? I mean this is an ensemble movie, so I am sure I did.
Anyway, I loved just how insane the whole thing was. It was clear this was a kind of Guardians of the Galaxy for DC. Or as near to it as they deserve.
Great sets, cinematography, costumes, stunts, action, comedy, balls, dick jokes, allusions to other great films. The list is long and distinguished.
What I didn’t really care for was the cartoonish nature of Starro and his coloring that gave him this benign look. Although I know it was a deliberate choice by Gunn and in keeping with the comics. Also, it made me think of the big-bad in Home. This little starfish. Didn’t like that some of the characters I was rooting for died, including one who wasn’t my favorite, but they grew on me posthumously. Or maybe I should say posthumorously . . . as the deaths in this movie were definitely mostly played for laughs!
Bottom line, people who tell you they hate this movie are just sad sacks and should be avoided like the current plague we are living under.
It’s just a funfucktastic film!!
